Nuns' Island gas station

Last updated
The filling station, in 2007. Mies van der Rohe gas station.jpeg
The filling station, in 2007.
The filling station, closed, in April 2010. Station essence Ile des Soeurs - Mies.jpg
The filling station, closed, in April 2010.

The Nuns' Island gas station was a modernist-style filling station in Montreal built in 1969 from a project of Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. Closed for several years, it was later converted to a community centre. [1] [2]

Contents

It was the first gas station on the island, commissioned by Imperial Oil. [3]

Community centre

"La Station" lighting at night La station.png
"La Station" lighting at night

The borough of Verdun transformed the building into a community arts centre, La Station. [4] Eric Gauthier was the lead architect on the project, which saw the two glass pavilions rebuilt to their original 3,000- and 1,000-square-foot (93 m2) sizes. [5]

La Station is a community centre for teens and people over 50 years of age. The two main buildings are called the salle blanche (English: white room) and salle noire (English: black room), after their floor colours. The original glass-enclosed attendant's booth serves as a display case of Mies' and the building's history, with the former fuel dispensers marked by ventilation shafts. The centre uses geothermal energy. [6]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ludwig Mies van der Rohe</span> German-American architect (1886–1969)

Ludwig Mies van der Rohe was a German-American architect, academic, and interior designer. He was commonly referred to as Mies, his surname. He is regarded as one of the pioneers of modern architecture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Outremont, Quebec</span> Borough of Montreal in Quebec, Canada

Outremont is an affluent residential borough (arrondissement) of the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It consists entirely of the former city on the Island of Montreal in southwestern Quebec. The neighbourhood is inhabited largely by Francophones, and is also home to a Hasidic Jewish community. Since the 1950s, Outremont has been mostly residential.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">International Style</span> 20th-century modern architectural style

The International Style or internationalism is a major architectural style that was developed in the 1920s and 1930s and was closely related to modernism and modernist architecture. It was first defined by Museum of Modern Art curators Henry-Russell Hitchcock and Philip Johnson in 1932, based on works of architecture from the 1920s. The terms rationalist architecture and modern movement are often used interchangeably with International Style, although the former is mostly used in the English-speaking world to specifically refer to the Italian rationalism, or even the International Style that developed in Europe as a whole.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toronto-Dominion Centre</span> Office complex in Toronto, Ontario, Canada

The Toronto-Dominion Centre, or TD Centre, is an office complex of five skyscrapers in the Financial District of downtown Toronto owned by Cadillac Fairview. It serves as the global headquarters for its anchor tenant, the Toronto-Dominion Bank, and provides office and retail space for many other businesses. The complex consists of six towers and a pavilion covered in bronze-tinted glass and black-painted steel. Approximately 21,000 people work in the complex, making it the largest commercial office complex in Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barcelona Pavilion</span> Building in Barcelona, Spain

The Barcelona Pavilion, designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Lilly Reich, was the German Pavilion for the 1929 International Exposition in Barcelona, Spain. This building was used for the official opening of the German section of the exhibition. It is an important building in the history of modern architecture, known for its simple form and its spectacular use of extravagant materials, such as marble, red onyx and travertine. Furnishings specifically designed for the building, including the Barcelona chair, are still in production. It has inspired many important modernist buildings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LaSalle, Quebec</span> Borough of Montreal in Quebec, Canada

LaSalle is the most southerly borough (arrondissement) of the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is located in the south-west portion of the Island of Montreal, along the Saint Lawrence River. Prior to 2002, it was a separate municipality that had been incorporated in 1912.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Verdun, Quebec</span> Borough of Montreal in Quebec, Canada

Verdun is a borough (arrondissement) of the city of Montreal, Quebec, located in the southeastern part of the island.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nuns' Island</span> Neighbourhood in Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Nuns' Island is an island located in the Saint Lawrence River that forms a part of the city of Montreal, Quebec. It is part of the borough of Verdun.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jolicoeur station</span> Montreal Metro station

Jolicoeur is a station on the Green Line of the Montreal Metro rapid transit system operated by the Société de transport de Montréal (STM). It is located in the Côte-Saint-Paul district in the borough of Le Sud-Ouest in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The station opened on September 3, 1978, as part of the extension of the Green Line westward to Angrignon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saint Laurent Boulevard</span> Street in Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Saint Laurent Boulevard, also known as Saint Lawrence Boulevard, is a major street in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. A commercial artery and cultural heritage site, the street runs north–south through the near-centre of city and is nicknamed The Main, which is the abbreviation for "Main Street".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">860–880 Lake Shore Drive Apartments</span> United States historic place

860–880 Lake Shore Drive is a twin pair of glass-and-steel apartment towers on N. Lake Shore Drive along Lake Michigan in the Streeterville neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois. Construction began in 1949 and the project was completed in 1951. The towers were added to the National Register of Historic Places on August 28, 1980, and were designated as Chicago Landmarks on June 10, 1996. The 26-floor, 254-ft tall towers were designed by the architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, and dubbed the "Glass House" apartments. Construction was by the Chicago real estate developer Herbert Greenwald, and the Sumner S. Sollitt Company. The design principles were copied extensively and are now considered characteristic of the modern International Style as well as essential for the development of modern high-tech architecture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Westmount Square</span> Residential and office complex in Westmount, Quebec

Westmount Square is a residential and office complex located in Westmount, Quebec, Canada. There are two residential apartment buildings and two office buildings. These towers sit atop an underground shopping centre consisting of thirty-five shops. It is located between Saint Catherine Street and De Maisonneuve Boulevard and between Wood Avenue and Greene Avenue. It is connected to Place Alexis Nihon, Dawson College, and the Atwater Metro station by a tunnel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">S. R. Crown Hall</span> United States historic place

S. R. Crown Hall, designed by the German-American Modernist architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, is the home of the College of Architecture at the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago, Illinois.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kluczynski Federal Building</span> Skyscraper in downtown Chicago Loop

The Kluczynski Federal Building is a skyscraper in the downtown Chicago Loop located at 230 South Dearborn Street. The 45-story structure was designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and completed in 1974 as the last portion of the new Federal Center. It is 562 feet (171 m) tall and with the Mies designed post office and plaza stands on the site previously occupied by the Chicago Federal Building by the architect Henry Ives Cobb. It was named in honor of U.S. Congressman John C. Kluczynski, who represented Illinois's 5th congressional district from 1951 to 1975 after his death that year. This is one of three buildings by van der Rohe in the Federal Center Plaza complex: the others are the Loop Station Post Office and the Everett McKinley Dirksen United States Courthouse.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ian Ritchie Architects</span> British architectural and design practice

Ian Ritchie Architects Ltd is a British architectural and design practice, based in London led by its founder Ian Ritchie. The practice changed its name to 'Ritchie Studio' on 24 June 2021. Recently completed projects include the RIBA Award-winning Susie Sainsbury Theatre, the Angela Burgess Recital Hall for the Royal Academy of Music, and the Sainsbury Wellcome Centre for Neural Circuits and Behaviour, University College London.

Henning Larsen Architects is an international architectural firm based in Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1959 by Henning Larsen, it has around 750 employees.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Everett McKinley Dirksen United States Courthouse</span> Courthouse in Chicago

The Everett McKinley Dirksen United States Courthouse, commonly referred to as the Dirksen Federal Building, is a skyscraper in the Chicago Loop at 219 South Dearborn Street. It was designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and completed in 1964. The building is 384 feet (117 m) tall with 30 floors; it was named for U.S. Congressman Everett Dirksen. The building houses the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, the United States Bankruptcy Court, the United States Marshal for the Northern District of Illinois, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and local offices for various court-related federal agencies, such as the Federal Public Defender, United States Probation Service, United States Trustee, and National Labor Relations Board. It is one of three buildings making up the modernist Chicago Federal Center complex designed by van der Rohe, along with Federal Plaza, the U.S. Post Office and the Kluczynski Federal Building. Separate from the Federal Plaza, but opposite the Kluczynski Building across Jackson Boulevard, is the Metcalfe Federal Building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maison Alcan</span> Building complex in Montreal, Canada

Maison Alcan is a building complex located on Sherbrooke Street in the Golden Square Mile district of Montreal, Canada. The complex was used to house the world headquarters for Alcan, now part of Rio Tinto Alcan, until 2015. Completed in 1983, the complex's integration of new construction with restored or renovated buildings marked a turning point in corporate Montreal's approach to development.

Herbert Greenwald was a Chicago real estate developer who utilized Ludwig Mies van der Rohe as the design architect for several landmark modern residential buildings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flores & Prats</span> Architectural practice in Barcelona, Spain

Flores & Prats is an architectural practice based in Barcelona, Spain, founded by Eva Prats and Ricardo Flores in 1998.

References

  1. "In Your Neighbourhood: The Mies Van Der Rohe Buildings". City of Montreal. Retrieved March 24, 2008.
  2. Perreaux, Les (January 27, 2009). "The Ritz of gas stations looks for a new life". The Globe and Mail . Retrieved January 28, 2009.
  3. "Master architect designs unique station". Montreal Gazette. September 20, 1968. p. 90. Retrieved December 26, 2009.
  4. Lejtenyi, Patrick. "Nuns saves Mies". Montreal Mirror . Communications Gratte-Ciel Ltée. Archived from the original on June 6, 2011.
  5. Leblanc, Dave (July 8, 2011). "Mies's Montreal gas station gets new lease on life". The Globe and Mail . Retrieved July 8, 2011.
  6. Woolfrey, John (February 24, 2012). "La Station: The Jewel in the Nuns' Island Crown". Openfile Montreal. Archived from the original on January 20, 2013.

45°27′36″N73°32′41″W / 45.4601°N 73.5446°W / 45.4601; -73.5446